


'Play' it Cool

by flower_tier



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: AU where they play volleyball outside of school rather than on the school team, M/M, Theatre, fluffy stuff, my inner drama nerd came out and this was born
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-20
Updated: 2015-09-05
Packaged: 2018-04-10 08:24:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 21,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4384490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flower_tier/pseuds/flower_tier
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the school's latest production, the two lead actors get more out of it than originally planned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. First Day

**Author's Note:**

> My first fanfiction! Oh boy
> 
> I hope it's all right so far!

Asahi stood nervously on the stage of the auditorium, surrounded by others. On a normal day, you'd never really expect to see him around here, but as it was, fate didn't really like him right now. He knew this because for some reason it had got him casted in the schools current production. Now, he didn't just get cast as any old part. He got the _lead role_. Well, one of them. He had originally tried out for the role of the other lead's brother, but that apparently went a little too well. He was now playing the shy florist of a small town who had a dream of traveling all over the world. It sounded pretty cheesy, but that's just how he was written.

Looking at him now, it wasn't all that hard to see how anxious he looked. He didn't calm down until someone walked over next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Glancing to the owner of said hand, Asahi came to realize that it was just Sugawara. Suga was the entire reason he tried out in the first place. He had wanted to get the lead along with his boyfriend, but that didn't really happen. Instead, it was Asahi and some other boy. If he was being completely honest, that's partially why he was so nervous.

This play was written by the drama director of their school to support the LGBT+ community. The two romantic leads are male, the florist's friend is a trans woman, and the French tour guide is aromantic. Now, this wasn't what bothered him. He was a full supporter. He was just worried on what the other lead would be like. From what he'd heard, his name was Nishinoya Yuu and he hadn't tried out under good circumstances. He was to be playing the cocky billionaire that finds Asahi's character and helps him with his dream because of a bet. It was a reoccurring thought for him now that the other would get fed up with him and quit or something, maybe even ridicule him or ask for a better lead.

"Asahi, you have to calm down." He heard from beside him. Suga was giving him a look, raising an eyebrow with a bit of sympathy in his gaze. "Be happy that you got a lead role because it means that you were really good at auditions! Which means you'll do fine right now."

He sighed, nodding in defeat. "Yes, you're right. I guess I just can't help shake the feelings..." With a small chuckle, he awkwardly rubbed at the back of his neck and soon enough the director called for role.

His name was the first one called and he raised his hand with a short, "Here." The director smiled at him before continuing down the list. It went on for awhile with the same emotionless replies until they had reached the N's. The director finally called out, "Nishinoya Yuu." and no one answered. Asahi raised an eyebrow and glanced around the room. The director cleared his throat and tried again, this time with a bit more force. "Nishinoya Yuu." Again, no one answered. He sighed and was about to put an x next to his name when some rumbling was heard in the distance.

Suddenly, the doors to the auditorium bursted open and standing there were two boys. One of them looked pretty short and had wild spiky hair. The other had a shaven head a weird expression on his face. Everything was quite for a mere two seconds before the shorter of the two shouted out, "Here!" Grinning, the boy then walked up the stage, followed by his friend. Asahi could feel a piece of himself dying.

_This is the person who has to play the other lead?_

The director's eyes were a mix of wide and worried. It was like he was scared with his choices. Though, he took in a deep breath and went on with the role call until they were all the way down the list. Everyone except for two people seemed to be there and the director put the clipboard underneath his arm. "All right, folks." He began, bringing his hands together in a loud clap. "Actors, you're going to stay down here. Technical crew, you're going to go upstairs to the catwalk with our technical director."

A women, also holding a clipboard, made a hand gesture to signal the kids over and began to walk off towards backstage. The director then looked to those remaining and smiled. "Okay. Before we get started, I'm going to go over the schedule. This week and half of next week will be blocking rehearsal and then the next two weeks and a half will be working rehearsal with scripts. After that, I want everyone to make sure that they are off book during the rest of rehearsals. Is that clear?"

All the students nodded with a resounding "Yes!"

"Great! We're going to start with scene one and work our way through now." He gestured to a large stack of papers on the side. "Grab a script and put your name on it. If you're in the first scene, get back on stage. If you're not, go offstage and wait for your time to come on." The students all walked over to the pile of scripts and grabbed one. As they did so, Asahi looked over to the other lead who seemed to be looking around at everyone else. For his loud entrance, he was surprisingly quiet now as he made his way offstage.

Asahi made his way back onstage and stood in the middle along with the trans girl who would be playing his friend. He took a final glance at Nishinoya, who seemed to have a look of surprise on his face, before the director began speaking again and the blocking went underway for the first scene. It was pretty simple what he had to do. It was just a few crosses and he'd have to lean against a prop once they had it. Then, the curtain would be called and they'd switch over to the next scene with Suga and Nishinoya.


	2. Let's Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I got around to updating this fast  
> Nice

Nishinoya walked out onto the stage along with a silver-haired boy he knew to be named Sugawara. His script was in hand and as the director told him what to do he did it, but it all seemed to happen automatically because he knew for a fact that his mind wasn't on rehearsal right now.

It was on the gorgeous six foot man that was apparently going to be his co-star.

Now, he was already pretty transfixed by this guy. His thoughts kept moving to how he had his hair in this little man bun and he already had scruff on his chin. His eyes were a deep brown and not to mention the emotion he could put behind them in his acting. Nishinoya wasn't even all that into theatre, but he could tell that this guy was pretty damn good at it...

Oh God, what is he even thinking?

He would've slapped himself if he weren't still onstage. He decided to just settle for a mental slap for now. His train of thought had to be directed elsewhere before he started thinking too much about that guy. Though, he figured it must be somewhat a good thing he seemed to be taking a liking to this guy. Otherwise, he'd be dying to get out of here as the only reason he was here in the first place was because the councilor told him to try out.

You see, Nishinoya had gotten in trouble yet again and the councilor figured that he should just put his energy into something productive for the school. Since the play was holding auditions, he was automatically signed up and he remembered the exact groan that he had made when he got the news that he had also managed to snag the lead. But now that he was getting a look at everything, he figured it may not be so bad after all. Especially since he convinced Tanaka to join this thing with him. He wasn't going in alone.

\-----~-----

Once the scene had finished, rehearsal ended. Nishinoya had grabbed his things and was going to find Tanaka, but a better idea had surfaced. He needed to get more information on this Azumane guy and the best way to do that was to talk with him.

He didn't really have much shame in his actions so the second year just walked right up behind the giant and poked him in the middle of his back. This seemed to make the other jump and he twirled around to look at him. A confused expression seemed to wash over his features, but he shook his head and decided to put on a smile instead.

"Um, do you need something?" He tried asking.

"Phone number." Nishinoya blurted out. "I need your phone number." The other seemed to be taken aback by that so he continued. "If we're going to be the leads, we should probably get to know each other, right? So, I need your phone number so we can talk."

The idea was considered and in the end Azumane ended up nodding slowly. "Ah, you have a point... All right, let's exchange then."

They both pulled out their phones and handed them to each other, quickly putting in the numbers and handing it back. As soon as Nishinoya had his back he snapped a picture of the unsuspecting other. Azumane blinked and he raised an eyebrow, eyes slightly wide.

"What? It's for your contact photo." He told him with a grin, momentarily showing him the picture. Though, he didn't show it long enough for him to do anything about it. "Anyways, I'll text you later Azumane."

He began to walk off before he was called out to. "You can just call me Asahi." The other said with a small, slightly nervous chuckle.

"All right. Asahi it is." With that, he threw a small smirk his way and then walked off to go find his friend.

Tanaka ended up finding him first, jumping off the stage and walking up to him. "So Noya, what's it like being a star?" He teased, putting an arm around him and gesturing up to the sky.

Nishinoya rolled his eyes, but smiled all the same. "It's great. How's it up there doing the lighting?"

The other grinned, folding his arms across his chest. "It's awesome! There's a few assholes, but I basically just got to do whatever I wanted the whole time. Plus, there's some pretty cute girls up there." Tanaka shifted to nudge him. "How about down here, though? Any worth mentioning?"

Thinking, Nishinoya shrugged. He knew there was someone worth mentioning, but not in the way that the other meant. "Nah. None of the girls have really sparked my interest." Well, that wasn't a lie. Tanaka almost looked disappointed, but he shrugged it off. "Ah, well. At least I've got my girls." He grinned and began to walk out.

The other rolled his eyes once more and followed him out so that they could walk home together like always.

\-----~-----

Nishinoya paced around his room, looking up at the ceiling and letting out long sighs. He had been home about an hour now, going straight to his room to contemplate what he should do. A part of him was considering practicing volleyball, but the other kept staring at his phone. He really wanted to just start up a conversation because the sooner he did it, the sooner he could know this guy. But, would it be too soon if he did now?

No. You know what? Fuck it. He was doing this right now.

He flopped onto his bed and rolled over to grab his phone. Opening up a new message, he tapped Asahi's contact and started typing.

_Hey. What's up?_

That sounded good. It was casual and simple and the perfect conversation starter. But, it seemed a bit too... Monotonous for him. So, he added a ' _:)_ ' before hitting send and placing his phone on a side table.

All there was to do now was sit and wait for a response.


	3. Texting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I'm writing more often than I expected myself to.

Asahi was lying in bed, resting his eyes when he felt his phone buzz from beside him. He opened his eyes and shifted so that he could grab the phone, opening up the message and smiling a bit.

_I'm resting. You?_

It wasn't long before he got a response back.

_I was pacing since I'm bored out of my mind over here._

_So, you decided to text me?_

_Yup! :)_

_I don't think I'm the best option to help with boredom._

_Dude, you're fine. Just talking now, I can feel my boredom just floating away._

Asahi raised an eyebrow and chuckled. Nishinoya seemed to be an all right person so far.

Before he had the chance to respond, another text came through.

_By the way, you're acting was great today. You a theatre guy?_

_No. Not at all, actually. I'm surprised I even got a role. I only really tried out because my friend was going to and he wanted me there._

_Oh, man. I actually dragged my friend along too, but he seems to be cool with it._

He was going to assume that was the guy he had bursted in with. Though, he was part of the technical crew if he remembered correctly.

_Aha, I see. Though, why did you try out? I've heard a rumor or two about it._

_Rumors? Geez. I got in trouble so they sent me to do something productive._

_What did you do to get in trouble?_

A minute or two passed before the next text came through.

_I may or may not have knocked to vice principle's wig off._

Asahi's eyes widened as he stared at the screen.

_You did what??_

_It was an accident! I ran through the halls and knocked into him and then poof he was bald._

He moved a hand to cover his face and let out a small sigh. Another buzz went off.

_Hey, can I call you? As fun as texting is, it's easier to just talk._

_Uh, sure. Go ahead._

Not even a few seconds after the text was sent, his phone began ringing and he was quick to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Asahi! Ah, this is so much better."

Chuckling, he sat himself up in his bed.

"I guess. It's easier to decipher your tone."

"What? Am I too cryptic in text or something?"

"No, no! It's just-"

"I'm just joking, calm down!"

Asahi let out a breath of relief and he could hear the other sighing through the phone before speaking again.

"So, what do you think of the play that we're doing?"

He had to think about it.

"Well, it's got an interesting story. But, I don't like the scene where my character figures out everything was based off a bet."

"What? Why?"

"Because I feel bad for your character! He's actually starting to like him and then my character starts to think it's all for laughs."

"Yeah, I guess, but it's the conflict! Y'know?"

Asahi smiled and let out a small sigh.

"I suppose your right there. I still sympathize with the characters, though."

"Mhm. Ya big softy."

"I'm not a softy!"

"You so are. The more you deny it, the more it's proven."

He let out a huff and shifted so that he could stand up from his bed. He was about to say something else when the other spoke before he could.

"Hey, Asahi. Once we start doing some scenes together, do you wanna come to my house to practice?"

Another smile made its way to his face.

"Of course. I'll probably need all the help that. I can get."

He could hear a mini, "Yes!" from the other side of the line before Nishinoya answered.

"Cool! You can come over this weekend and stay over. I'll text you the address."

"All right. Sounds like a plan."

It then sounded like he other was going to say something again, but another voice sounded in the background.

"Damn. I have to go. I'll talk with you later, Asahi!"

"Oh, by-"

The line went dead.

Asahi removed his phone from his ear and looked at it before plopping back down on his bed and placing his phone on his side table, thinking over the conversation he'd just had. Now that he was getting to know him, Nishinoya didn't sound all /too/ bad. The thing with the vice principal's wig was putting him off, but he supposed that wasn't as bad as it could be. He was just about to go back to resting when another buzz caught his attention. Groaning, he rolled over and looked at it. Apparently, Suga had texted.

_How did you like rehearsals?_

He sighed and typed out a reply.

_They were all right. Kind of nerve-wracking, but I got to talk with Nishinoya after it._

_Oh? What's he like?_

Asahi hummed in thought as he typed out his answer.

_Blunt. Sort of funny. He seems to be a good guy over all._

_:D That's good! If he's an all right guy, it'll make scene 12 all the easier._

His eyes widened. He had totally forgotten about scene twelve.

_Let's not talk about that right now._

_Hmm. Is Asahi embarrassed?_

_No! We just haven't gotten there in rehearsals so why bother with it?_

_You're embarrassed._

You can never really get one over on Suga. He had a motherly instinct that no one really knew how to avoid. Not even Daichi.

_Okay, okay. But, I still don't want to talk about it right now!_

_All right. ;) But, you're going to have to deal with it eventually!_

Asahi groaned and turned his phone off, placing it back on the side table. He rolled over onto his face in his bed and let out a very, very long sigh. His hands then moved under his face to cover it even more as he screwed his eyes shut.

Scene twelve would be the death of him. It felt a bit childish for him to be thinking something like that because of the situation, but he really couldn't help it.

Because scene twelve was...

Well, let's just say it's the peak of the romantic journey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a lot of italic gee whiz


	4. They Know

The next day of rehearsals had started and everyone was making their way into the auditorium, up onto the stage. Nishinoya and Tanaka were actually there on time today so there would be no random bust-ins.

"Hey, Noya, what's your color?" Tanaka asked after a momentary silence between the two of them.

Nishinoya raised an eyebrow. "Hah?"

The other let out a sigh and grimaced. "The technical director sent out emails giving us things to do. I apparently have to figure out what light or shade of light the actors look best in for spotlighting."

It was pretty hard to contain a laugh, but he managed it and gave him an answer. "People say I look nice in orange."

Tanaka nodded. "All right." Looking to the side where a few kids were gathering, he sighed yet again. "Damn, we're already heading up. Have fun with your scenes!" With that, the other was off and the director had taken his place in from of the rest of the kids.

"Quiet down, quiet down!" Everyone took a moment, but eventually there was no more noise. 

Except for two voices in the back.

"Shut up, dumbass! Can't you see he's trying to talk?!"

"You're the one that started this!"

"I was not! You started trying to-"

Upon looking back at them, Nishinoya vaguely recognized them. If he remembered correctly, it was Kageyama Tobio and Hinata Shouyou. Apparently, they had been so rowdy in auditions that the director had been scared to give them a responsibility. Since this was a school production and everyone had to get a part, they were trusted with the two things that took a lot to fuck up.

They were playing the moon and the sun respectively.

"Oi!" The director called out. "What's the best thing about the sun and the moon?!"

The two of them turned back to look at him and replied together. "They don't have mouths." It was easy to tell from their tones that they were disgruntled.

The director smiled and nodded before he went to call the role for the day. Everyone had gotten here and they were quick to start up with the next scene. This time around, it was actually with Nishinoya and Asahi.

Nishinoya was to enter stage left and cross to Asahi, asking for some flowers. From there, they'd start to chat and his character's bet would really start. Since he was a generally selfish character, he had to do one nice thing for someone and he was going to take Asahi's character on a trip to fulfill his dream.

As the blocking went on, Nishinoya couldn't help glancing up from his script more often when he was supposed to. He was getting far too caught up in the other's presence. Since he actually seemed fairly into it, there was a lot of... Emotion behind his words and there was a confidence to him here. It really was hard not to get lost in his voice.

When did he get so sappy?

This definitely couldn't be good. He knew he felt... Attracted to this guy, but he didn't want to move into full blown _like_. This had to be just a strong admiration. Yeah. Asahi's really good at acting so he probably just finds it really cool. He definitely just wants to be close to him for totally platonic reasons.

Or at least, that's what he wanted to think.

They then continued on into scene four with Suga and Nishinoya yet again, with Hinata in the background since they were outside this time around. His focus got a little better now that Asahi was off stage, but he couldn't help noticing the small look that was being given to him by Suga as he walked onstage. It disappeared once they began acting, but it was definitely there beforehand.

This scene just involved them talking things over about the last scene. Suga's character in doubt that he'd go through with it and Nishinoya's character bragging about he was totally going to win their little bet. It didn't take too long to block, but scene three had been rather lengthy and the director wanted to keep a pace of two scenes a day. So once they were finished with that, everyone went their separate ways.

Nishinoya glanced back at Suga a moment and noticed him talking to Asahi. He felt an urge to go over and talk with them too, but that was interrupted by someone nearly crashing into him.

I don't think it's too hard to guess who that is.

Tanaka now stood before, a wide smirk on his face and slightly winded from probably running down the steps and all the way over to him.

"Why the hell didn't you tell me?!" He practically yelled, drawing the attention of a few bystanders.

Nishinoya's eyes widened. "Tell you what?"

The other made a small gesture with his head towards Asahi. "You've totally got it bad for that guy."

He could feel a small heat creeping over his face as he scoffed. "Like hell I do. He's just good at what he's doing. Is it so wrong to admire him for that?"

Not all that convinced, he folded his arms smugly across his chest. "I don't know. Is it so wrong to make goo-goo eyes at him between your lines?"

"I wasn't doing that!" He tried to argue, but in all honesty he didn't really know.

"Noya, I am literally watching you from above. I can see when you're looking up at that guy. You totally were."

Nishinoya rolled his eyes and began to walk towards the door of the auditorium. "Yeah, yeah. Think what you will, Ryuu."

Tanaka shook his head, the smirk never leaving his features as he followed after his friend. The other could deny it all he wanted, but he knew what he was talking about.

Just as they were walking out, a buzz came from Nishinoya's pocket. He pulled out his phone to see that he had gotten a text from Asahi.

_Suga thought you should have his number as well._

After that, there was another buzz and a text with the number.

Just what exactly is up with Suga today?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thanks to patrickstumped for the idea of making Kageyama the moon! I decided to add in Hinata as the sun as well because
> 
> C'mon he totally would be in this circumstance


	5. Suga's Instinct

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't originally plan to make this chapter like this, but I liked the rhythm of switching between Asahi and Nishinoya's perspectives with each chapter and I really think the next event would be better through Nishinoya's. Plus, this gave a chance to explain Suga's actions just a bit.

Asahi raised an eyebrow up at Suga once he finished sending the text. "Are you wanting to practice with him too, then?"

Suga hummed and shook his head. "No, I just think I'd like to talk with him." He replied, sending a smile up at him.

With that smile, it was hard to think that there were any other intentions behind it, but he knew better. There were some wheels turning in Sugawara's head and he wanted to know what exactly they were. Though, he knew it wouldn't be so easy to get it out of him.

"So, Asahi." The other continued, brushing a strand of hair from his own face. "Speaking of Nishinoya, have you... Noticed anything about him?"

The question threw him a bit off guard. Had he noticed anything? Not that he could really think of. His mind just kept moving to the new intensity in his eyes or the way his bangs would flop around cutely when he moved his head around- Wait, cutely? He could feel a small heat creeping up his neck and onto his face.

"Ah, no, not really." He offered with a small chuckle, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.

Suga quirked a brow up at him, but didn't outwardly argue with the statement. "Oh, so you haven't been paying attention to the way he's been looking at you through rehearsal?" He asked instead.

This made Asahi pause. "What?"

"He's been looking at you quite a bit. His gaze different from when he looks at anyone else." The other told him, pulling out his phone.

Okay, that statement hadn't help the color that filled his cheeks. He hadn't really paid attention when Nishinoya was looking at him because he was too busy making sure that he was doing what he was supposed to for the director, barely looking up from his script. The most he really looked at the other was in passing or glances he had to spare when he wasn't looking. That sounded a bit creepy in retrospect and he inwardly cringed.

"Is that so?" He asked, trying to brush off any visible embarrassment from his features.

Suga nodded. "Mhm. You should try to look for it sometime."

Asahi was about to respond when another person walked up to them, resting an arm over Suga's shoulders. It appears Daichi had finally made his way over to them.

"Are you guys ready to get going?" He asked, looking between the two of them.

They both nodded and began to head out the door, beginning their walk home together. It remained silent as they did so, Daichi and Suga moving to hold hands as Asahi just sort of walked behind them. He often felt a bit third-wheelish when he was with the both of them, but he knew they were still his friends all the same. They had been for awhile, so why would anything change now?

Everything continued on until a buzz came from Suga's pocket. He pulled out his phone and smiled, beginning to type something out. It was slow since he only had one thumb to use, but he managed. Daichi raised an eyebrow though and Asahi's curiosity was hardly hidden in his features.

"Who are you talking to?" Daichi asked, glancing to the phone before flicking his attention back to the other's face.

"It's just Nishinoya." He answered simply, but there was a hint of mischief in his eyes. Another text message came through and was responded to.

"What are you guys talking about?" It was Asahi that spoke up this time.

Suga hummed a moment before leaning up to whisper something in Daichi's ear. His eyes seemed to go wide before he looked to Asahi and smirked.

"Ohhh, I see." He said, looking back to Suga and nodding in understanding.

Asahi just stood to the side, very confused. "Can I not know?" He asked, looking between the two of them.

"Not right now. But, you will in due time! Don't worry." Suga told him, trying to reassure.

Yeah, it didn't reassure him. "But, I'd like to know now. Can't I at least get a hint?"

The other two looked to each other and laughed before shaking their heads no.

"Trust me, knowing right now isn't going to do you any good." Daichi responded, reaching up to give Asahi a small pat on the back. "But, you'll get it eventually."

Asahi's brows came together in confusion, but he remained quiet for the rest of their time together. The only noise that was really made was the buzzing and tapping coming from Suga's phone. It wasn't long before they all parted ways and headed towards their own houses.

As Asahi made it inside and back into his room, he let out a small sigh and leaned back against his shut door. Thoughts of the previous conversation swirled through his head. He was pretty sure whatever it was had to do with him if he was the one that wasn't allowed to know, but he wasn't sure whether or not it was a good thing or a bad thing. Suga had seemed happy, so he assumed it couldn't be too bad. But, even that thought didn't really help with his worry.

After a moment of thought, an idea came to mind.

_Why not just ask Nishinoya?_

He pulled out his own phone and sent him a text.

_Hey, what were you and Suga talking about earlier? He wouldn't tell me._

Five minutes had passed before he got any sort of reply.

_It was nothing! Don't even worry about it._

_It didn't seem like nothing! He had this knowing smile on and I'm really curious. D:_

_Trust me, you probably don't wanna know. Just chill out. It's nothing big._

Asahi couldn't help, but think that was a lie just now. Though, he went along with it. He didn't really know what to say that would get him to spill the information anyways.

_All right, you promise?_

_I promise! :) See you at rehearsal tomorrow, Asahi._

With that, he set his phone aside and sat down, mind swimming and his thoughts more confused than ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, Suga. Always the observant one.
> 
> Also, I'm sorry if the pace is pretty fast in this one. I feel like it is, but that could just be me. I dunno.


	6. Weekend Practice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this is the longest chapter yet ^^

The days went by slower than Nishinoya would've liked, but the day had finally come.

Friday.

Tonight, Asahi would be coming over to stay for the weekend and Nishinoya could barely contain his excitement. The only thing that put some stress in his mood was what he had talked about with Sugawara. Apparently, that guy was more perceptive than he looks and pretty much saw straight through him.

He knew that he was experiencing at least some sort of feelings for Asahi and was the first to say that he'd have some hell to pay if he did anything to hurt him. Nishinoya had, of course, tried to deny any attraction, but this guy was like some knowing parent. He settled on saying it was just a deep admiration and Suga had seemed satisfied for the moment. But, he knew he still suspected more.

Not that Nishinoya could see why he would.

He sighed and shuffled about in his room, picking up random things that were on the floor and taking dirty dishes over to the sink and throwing his bed together. Everything had to be nicer since he honestly didn't know much about what he was like outside of practice. At least, in person. Over the week, they had kept up their after rehearsal texting and he'd practically memorized his typing habits by now. (His favorite one being when he'd mistype due to how big his thumbs were.)

As soon as Nishinoya was just about to do a final sweep of his room, he heard a small knock coming from the front door. It wasn't very loud, but it was just enough to make it through the house. He rushed over to the front door and pulled it open, happy to see that Asahi was standing there.

"Hey, come in!" He said, stepping to the side so that the other could enter.

Asahi did just that and a small smile found it's way to his features. He murmured, "Pardon the intrusion." before going to take off his shoes.

Nishinoya watched him do so, then grabbed his arm and began to yank him towards his room. "Come on, let's get this started!"

The movement seemed to take the other by surprise and he almost tripped over his own feet, but he quickly caught himself. The journey to Nishinoya's room only took about twenty steps and upon entering, Asahi's eyes widened and he seemed to be having a moment of realization.

Not understanding the other's expression, Nishinoya followed his gaze and saw that it landed on his volleyball. Raising a brow, he looked between it and Asahi a few times. "Do you play?" He asked, walking over to pick the ball up.

He smiled and nodded. "Ah, yeah, I do."

"What position?" Nishinoya asked as a grin began to form on his face.

"Wing spiker."

Yeah, he didn't doubt that.

"I'm kinda considered the ace of my team."

What.

So apparently, this guy was not only pretty attractive. He also happened to be into volleyball, the ace of his team no less. Taking this in, a small silence ensued and the ace began to look rather anxious.

"Er, how about you? What position do you play?" He ended up asking.

This snapped Nishinoya from his thoughts and he blinked a few times before replying, jabbing a thumb in his own direction. "I'm a libero."

The other seemed to relax a bit and ended up chuckling to himself.

"What's so funny?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Huh? Oh, nothing! I just thought it was cool that I guessed right." Asahi replied, rubbing at the back of his neck.

Nishinoya squinted. "Was it because I'm short?"

The taller's eyes widened and a sheepish expression washed over his features, nodding his head slowly.

He rolled his eyes and huffed, plopping over onto his bed.

"I-I'm sorry I-"

"It's fine. You're not the first one." Nishinoya waved it off and placed the volleyball he had back on a side table. "How about we get started with practice now?"

Asahi nodded and got out his script, Nishinoya doing the same. "Should we just do the scenes we have together?"

The libero hummed to himself before shrugging. "Yeah, probably. I mean, it's not like we have a lot of time left in the day right now."

They both gave each other a sort of affirming nod before walking out into the living room (aka the place with the largest space) and beginning to work through scene three and then onto others. It went smoothly for the most part, only having a few stumbled words or missteps. Though, it was overall nice and very helpful since Nishinoya knew he probably wouldn't be putting his own time into rehearsal if someone wasn't there with him to do it.

They worked until they reached scene ten, as that's as far as they'd gotten in actual rehearsals, before stopping and flopping down on the couch together. Nishinoya threw his script to the side and Asahi's just rested in his lap. They sat close, but not close enough that they were squished together. It was a fairly large couch, after all.

"Do you think we should just do the lines for the next scenes?" The shorter asked, turning his head to look at the other.

Asahi considered it before his eyes went wide and he quickly shook his head. "No, no! I think we're fine for right now! Besides, we haven't had anything for dinner yet." He rambled on before biting the inside of his cheek.

Nishinoya had his eyebrow raised and he let out a drawn out, "Okaaaaay..." before turning his gaze over to the kitchen. "I can't make much, but I might be able to make some ramen."

The other smiled warmly at this and Nishinoya could feel something in his stomach flutter. "All right. That's actually somewhat my favorite."

_Then fuck him if he isn't going to make that guy the best god damned ramen he's ever tasted._

Nishinoya grinned and got to work quickly, though he had to look up a few things on his phone so that he didn't accidentally end up fucking something up. I the middle of it all, Asahi had come over to try and offer help, but it was waved off. He was going to do this.

It was finished soon enough and Asahi was sat awkwardly at the table, idly playing with his thumbs. His dish was set in front of him by Nishinoya who then proceeded to sit across from him with his own meal, watching the other take the the first bite so he could gauge his reaction.

It started out normal, but his eyes then lit up and another smile appeared on his face as he continued to eat.

_Asahi will be the death of him._

He really wanted to slam his head on the table, but that just wouldn't lead to anything good so he instead opted to drown himself in the ramen he made. It was pretty good and it was better than delving closer to the inescapable crush void.

Though, he soon ran out of it and so did Asahi.

Nishinoya went to take the dishes and brought them to the sink. He just left them there for now because he honestly didn't feel like washing anything. After he had done that, he lead Asahi back to his room and flopped on his back onto his bed. The other just stood around awkwardly.

"Soooo... What should we do now?" He asked, looking up and over at him.

Asahi shrugged. "I'm not sure. I don't exactly know what you have to do here."

"Good point." Nishinoya looked around his room for inspiration until his eyes landed on a small TV in his room. "How about we watch a movie?"

The other blinked and considered the idea before nodding. "Okay, that sounds good. What movie?"

"I dunno. How about..." He thought through all the different movies he had. "Green Flash?"

"Sounds as good as any." Asahi replied with a small smile.

"All right!" Nishinoya hopped up and went to put in the disk before heading to the door. "You sit down and I'll go make us some popcorn, okay?" He didn't wait for a response as he left for the kitchen.

It took only a few minutes for the bag to pop and to pour it in a bowl. Though, he took his time practically slathering it all with butter because that's the way he thought it tasted best. He then took the bowl back to the room and was surprised by what he saw.

Apparently, Asahi must have been really tired because he was passed out, flopped over sideways like he originally fell asleep sitting up. Actually, that's probably what happened. Nishinoya raised a brow and didn't actually know how to proceed now. The movie title screen was up so he decided to first press play, but then it came down to where he was going to sit. He'd like to just sit on the bed because his floor was hard, but could he do that without disturbing Asahi or making things weird if he woke up?

Well, he was going to find out. He could sit near him if he wanted to.

He sat down on the side of the bed, popcorn bowl in his lap as he began to watch the movie by himself. It went on for awhile until he felt his own eye lids start to droop. The last thing he remembers is setting the bowl aside and laying down next to the other before a deep and blissful sleep claimed him.


	7. Panic

_Red alert. Red alert._

Asahi had only just opened his eyes that morning, but his heart was racing faster than it had in a long time.

It seemed to be early in the morning as the light only just seeped in through the blinds, casting a striped print on the person who was apparently right in front of him. That person being Nishinoya. Asahi had no idea how they ended up so close, but he was very aware of the presence now. Their legs were tangled in odd angles and Nishinoya's arm was draped over his side. Their chests were practically right up against each other and Asahi was painfully aware of the other's breath against him.

He really wanted to get as far away as possible to calm himself down, but he also really didn't want to wake Nishinoya up. Deciding to accept his fate, Asahi took in a deep breath and bit the inside of his cheek, suddenly feeling every movement tenfold. He began trying to even out his thoughts and eventually settled on looking over the other's face.

It was very... Relaxed compared to his usual energized features. The hair that usually spiked straight up went in all different directions and Asahi had to hold back a small chuckle. His eyes were just barely closed and his lips slightly parted, letting out quiet and even breaths. They almost looked kinda-

_You stop that this instant, Thoughts._

Asahi's face flushed brightly and he felt movement coming from the other. It only took a few moments for the arm to be moved from around him and went to rub at an eye. A yawn was heard before he saw hazy eyes looking up at him and a small, confused "Asahi...?" was mumbled.

Shit.

Hearing Nishinoya awake had struck up another panic inside him. He ended up jumping and flailing off of the bed and onto the floor with a loud yelp. This caused the other to sit straight up and stare at him with wide eyes and a raised brow, but from the look on his face Asahi could tell that he was trying really hard to hold in a laugh.

He inevitably failed and ended up doubling over in a boisterous laughter that Asahi felt like he could listen to forever. Well, if it wasn't directed at him, that is.

"Are- Are y-you okaa-haha-ay?" He managed to get out, wiping a small tear from the corner of his eye.

Asahi mumbled a "Yeah." as his face heated up even more than before. He stood up and buried his face in his hands. That was incredibly embarrassing.

Nishinoya calmed himself down to a chuckle and stood up on the bed, making it so he was just a it taller than Asahi, and placing a hand on his shoulder. With a loud and happy sigh to end it, he smiled down at him. "Good. Let's go eat, then." With that, he had hopped off the bed and began the journey over to the kitchen, reaching up to grab one of Asahi's hands and pulling him along.

Yeah, that wasn't helping the heat in his cheeks.

Asahi allowed himself to be taken along and ended up sitting in the same seat he had for dinner the night previous. He sat in his own silence before a bowl of cereal was placed down in front of him.

"Dig in." He heard Nishinoya say before watching him sit down across from him.

He smiled and ate a few spoonfuls. It didn't particularly taste like anything special. It was just some sort of cornflakes, but the extra sugar that he could taste made it like the other had really tried to make it sweet for him. It was a nice thought to him.

"Compliments to the chef." He told him between bites in a semi-joking manner, raising his spoon a bit as if in a toast.

Nishinoya grinned and laughed and Asahi could've stared all day.

But, he had bowl of cereal to finish and wanted to avoid being creepy.

So, he did just that before picking up his bowl and offering to take Nishinoya's as well over to the sink. The offer was declined and the bowl was snatched from his hands, the libero deciding that he was going to take them instead because Asahi was the guest.

"All right, I'm going to go shower and fix my hair. You can just wait wherever." Nishinoya told him as he came back out of the kitchen before proceeding right on past him back to his bathroom.

Asahi decided that he should probably put on some new clothes as well so he went back into Nishinoya's room and grabbed his clothes from his bag, taking off his old ones and slipping into a fresh new outfit. He redid his bun loosely behind his head and then sat on the bed as he waited for Nishinoya to finish up, busying himself with his thoughts. It didn't take too long for the other to come back, but he didn't look as Asahi expected him to.

Instead of the uniform that he usually saw him in, he had on just some baggy t-shirt and shorts. His hair also wasn't in it's usual spike. It was dripping down against his head and while it made him look fairly cute it also made him look... Really short. His hair must really add to his height. A small laugh was threatening to escape as he had to bite both of his cheeks to keep it from happening.

Nishinoya raised an eyebrow at him, but the expression was shrugged off. "Can you get me the new hairspray from the shelf? I just ran out."

_He could tell._

"Uh, y-yeah, sure." He replied, continuing to try and hold in his laugh. Leaning over, Asahi grabbed it and tossed it the two feet over, Nishinoya catching it with ease.

"Thanks!" With that, he left the room and Asahi was in tears. He covered his mouth with a fist to keep his laughter in as much as he could, but it wasn't much help.

Eventually, his laughter subsided and Nishinoya returned so that they could go on With their practice for the day. They practiced through the scenes a few times since they had more time in the day. It was all going smoothly until about the third time around of scene 10.

"Something wrong?" Asahi read before looking at Nishinoya with a raised eyebrow.

Nishinoya acted as if he had been snapped out of a trance, blinking a few times and stumbling back. Normally, this would've just gone by, but apparently they'd started a bit too close to the coffee table this time around. He ended up walking backwards into one of the corners, scraping against the side of his leg.

Asahi immediately flipped out, dropping his script and character as he rushed over to the other. "Oh no- Are you okay?!" He asked, looking down to his leg.

Nishinoya had winced, but he now shrugged, looking down to it as well. "I'm fine."

"You're _bleeding_."

"I'm _fine_."

"I am _getting you a band-aid_."

Asahi may not know where the first-aid stuff was in this house, but he generally brought a few things with him just in case. So, he took Nishinoya by the arm and lead him back to the room.

"Sit down on the bed." He said as he began to dig through his bag.

"Asahi, I'm not five. I can handle a little scratch."

Asahi didn't say anything in response. He instead pulled out a band-aid and some disinfecting spray. Walking over to where the other sat, he bent down and began to clean up the wound, wiping it off before placing the band-aid over it. He stood up and put a hand on his hip, satisfied with his handiwork.

The libero on the other hand was not looking as pleased. In fact, he was just staring at it. A moment of silence passed before Nishinoya spoke up.

"Asahi?"

"Yeah?"

"Why the hell is it a Hello Kitty band-aid?"

The band-aid was bright pink and covered in little Hello Kitty faces. It even had a hint of glitter.

Asahi's face went red and he turned around to put the disinfecting spray away.

"They were on sale."

" _Asahi_."

"I have to save!"

"I have bandages here you could've used."

"I don't know where those are."

"Well, I don't _need_ a band-aid."

"Yes. You do."

Nishinoya stood up and rolled his eyes, walking out and back to the living room to get his script. Asahi followed after him with a small smile on his face because no matter how much he complained, one fact remained.

He never bothered to try and take it off.

"You know, I really think pink might be your color."

"Shut up."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had the idea of Nishinoya in a Hello Kitty band-aid and couldn't resist whoops


	8. Pretty Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who's ready for scene twelve ;)

Weekend practice had passed by and soon enough the weight of Monday was dragging everyone back into the school routine for the week. Rehearsals started up again and they picked up where they had left off.

Today, they would start scene eleven and go on through scene twelve.

Nishinoya and Tanaka walked into the auditorium like they had every other day, though this time around they remained silent a moment or two. Nishinoya looked confused and the other was sending a smirk in his direction.

"So, you sure you don't know what today is?" He asked, bouncing his eyebrows.

The libero let out somewhat of an exasperated sigh. "If I knew what today was, I would've answered already!"

Tanaka just laughed and patted Nishinoya on the back. "Well, I guess you're gonna find out soon enough." His smirk grew and he began walking off to the catwalk. "Have fun during rehearsals~!"

Nishinoya rolled his eyes at him and chuckled before walking onto the stage and waiting for rehearsal to begin. The only two standing on stage for this scene would be Sugawara and Nishinoya. Though, Asahi would be entering somewhere in the middle. The blocking went on just like it usually would and they went straight on from scene eleven to scene twelve where Asahi runs onstage.

Nishinoya watched as the other read through his monologue, expressing his character's hopelessness, before running onto the stage with a loud, "Kenji!", as that was Asahi's name in the play.

The director called out their movement so that it could be written down as it went on. Though, this particular scene didn't have too much of it.

"What? What could you possibly want with me now? You finished your little bet, didn't you?" Asahi read, voice feigning sorrow.

"Azumane cross left, Nishinoya follow!"

They did as they were told before Nishinoya went on with his next line. "I want to talk to you!"

Asahi turned to look at him. "What about? I've already heard everything I need to hear!" He then folded his arms and looked away.

Nishinoya glanced to his script momentarily before reading the next line. "No, you haven't! My brother is an idiot."

"So, you _didn't_ do this for a bet?" He immediately countered.

Nishinoya looked away. "No, I did, but-"

It took a moment for Asahi to read the script, a pause that would be cut out once things were memorized, before continuing. "But nothing! All of this has been a lie."

"Pull him down by the collar, Nishinoya!"

He blinked at the director, but didn't question it as he reached up with his free hand to pull Asahi down closer to him. "Not all of it." His eyes then flickered down to the next action that had actually been included in the script.

_(ISAMU kisses KENJI)_

_Oh._

He looked back up to Asahi's face which was burning a dark red. Nishinoya wanted to look away, to keep himself from doing something stupid for once, but that went completely out the door as he said, "Holy shit, your eyes are really pretty."

As Nishinoya was trying to move his brain from the regret of his words, he focused on the truth behind them because Asahi really did have pretty eyes. They were a dark brown, but the world seemed to be reflected in them. It was like this weird cavern that he could get lost in and wouldn't care if he never got out. Now, the only thing that snapped him from his thoughts was when those said eyes widened and blinked a few times, giving the libero a confused stare because he probably knew that that line wasn't in the script.

"Er... What?"

It was Nishinoya's turn to go red and he was about to say something before a loud voice came from above them.

"Smooth, Noya!"

And then an annoyed, "Shut up!"

"Ouch!"

His gaze immediately snapped upwards as a new thought came to mind.

_Ryuu is going down._

It was only then that he heard the director speak up. "All right you two! You don't actually have to kiss until the night we perform. Just do what you're doing now except without the unnecessary commentary." He sent a look in Nishinoya's direction. "Just remember that the kiss should last about four seconds."

Both actors nodded and the scene continued on, ending in their respective love confessions and an exit to stage right.

Nishinoya's heart was still pounding more than he thought it should be as he got off the stage. He was about to get lost in thought again when he felt a hand come down on his shoulder.

"Nice going during rehearsals today." Tanaka said through a hand, muffling his laughter.

He grumbled and sent a glare in his direction. "Don't remind me."

Letting out a hearty laugh, the other was about to say something before another voice spoke up.

"Yeah, don't remind anyone. It's annoying enough that we had to watch the thing go down."

Turning around, Nishinoya noticed a tall blonde figure walking in their direction.

Tanaka's expression immediately went foul. "Nobody asked you, Tsukishima."

"Maybe not, but it's true. The events were horribly embarrassing for everyone to watch." The guy, presumed to be Tsukishima, then looked to Nishinoya. "If you're going to harbor feelings for the guy, the _least_ you could do is just ask him out to avoid anymore stops in rehearsals."

Nishinoya's eyes narrowed. "I don't have any feelings for the guy! We're just romantic leads in a play so we're gonna act like that."

"Oh?" A small smirk played at the taller's lips. "My mistake, then." He then continued on his way past them and Nishinoya turned to look at Tanaka.

"Who the hell is that?"

"Tsukishima Kei. He's one of the assholes on lights with me." He grumbled, sneering in his direction.

Nishinoya raised an eyebrow, but didn't argue with that statement. He did seem like an asshole. Though, that was beside the point now as Tanaka spoke up again.

"But, he did say something right for once."

"And what's that?"

"You should ask him out."

"Ryuu, I just told the guy his eyes are pretty."

" _And_?"

He let out a loud sigh. " _And_ I can't ask him on a date right now."

"Then just ask him on one 'for the play'." Tanaka had made air quotations, trying to emphasize the joke, but Nishinoya took it seriously.

"Maybe I will."

"... You're kidding?"

"Nope. I'm gonna do it." With that, he looked around, trying to spot Asahi and Tanaka just shook his head in the background.


	9. For the Play

Daichi and Suga stood in front of a red-faced Asahi, just dying from laughter and having to lean on each other for support.

"Oh, what _beautiful_ eyes you have, Asahi." Daichi managed to get out, practically tearing up from how much he was laughing.

Asahi's face just kept getting brighter as he went to cover it with his hands. "C-Could you guys please stop?!" They'd been giggling about it nonstop since rehearsals ended.

Suga's laughter was the first to die down as he gave a few nods. "Haha... All right, all right."

Daichi took another moment or two to get it under wraps, but he got it none the less. "Ahh, sorry Asahi. That was just... Really unexpected." He told him with another chuckle, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

He let out a long sigh and moved his hands back down to his sides. "Of course it was unexpected! The words aren't in the script..." Asahi murmured.

"But, you didn't seem to mind the compliment all too much." Suga commented, an odd smile on his face.

"... And?"

He hummed before answering. "Hm, nevermind it."

Daichi raised an eyebrow at him and was given a look before he nodded with understanding, mouth forming a silent 'Oh.'

"Why do you guys keep doing that?" Asahi asked, almost in a pout.

"Because you don't get it yet." Daichi answered bluntly.

"Will I ever?"

"Of course!" Suga answered, offering a comforting smile. "It'll just take a bit more time, is all."

"You've been saying that for days."

"And I'm going to continue saying it for more days. Be patient."

Asahi sighed in defeat and before anyone could say anything else, a loud, "Asahi!" could be heard in the distance. The three of them turned to the source and eventually they saw Nishinoya and his friend standing there. The libero had a determined look in his eyes as he stared straight at Asahi.

"Is everything all-"

"I want you to come on a date with me."

His eyes widened and from the corner of his eyes he could see Daichi holding in another laugh.

"Uh, I-"

"For the play, I mean. We're romantic leads and should get used to it, right?"

His friend seemed to be rolling his eyes, folding his arms and letting out a small scoff. Nishinoya promptly elbowed him in the stomach. Asahi, quite frankly, didn't know how to respond. He wasn't expecting the question and the events so far in the day were making him a bit shaky on his reply. Glancing to Suga, he looked at him with pleading eyes. It took only a moment for him to pick up on what he was trying to ask and gave a slow nod of his head. With that, he went to turn back to look at Nishinoya who was looking back at him with a very intense gaze, eyes dead set on his. It was like he was physically being held in place by the other's stare alone. Taking in a deep breath, he put on a nervous smile.

"Sure. It sounds like a good idea." He responded with a small nod.

A hint of doubt crossed Nishinoya's features momentarily before it was quickly forgotten. "Okay, awesome. I can text you the details, yeah?"

"Mhm. I'll talk with you later, then."

"All right, b-"

"Hold on."

It was Suga who spoke up that time. While his face held a smile, his arms were folded across his chest. "Can I talk with you for a second, Nishinoya?"

Everyone sent confused stares in Suga's direction, but he just smiled and Nishinoya just shrugged. "I don't see why not." He replied, stepping off to the side with Suga.

Asahi, Tanaka, and Daichi stood watching them until the latter piped up to break the silence.

"I don't know _exactly_ what they're talking about, but I think it's safe to say that he's not going to cause you any trouble when you're out."

Asahi gave a slow nod in reply. The conversation looked to be pleasant, Nishinoya nodding in affirmation every so often and Suga seemed to be giving him a look of... Warning? That was the best word for it.

Soon enough, the libero had left, Tanaka following after him, and Suga had made his way back to the group. Asahi didn't bother asking what they'd talked about because he'd learned by now that, if the matter involved Nishinoya, he wasn't allowed to know. They began to walk home, making idle conversation here and there. It all ended, though, as they hit the place where they split yet again. But before they separated, Suga spoke up once more.

"Hey, when you go on the date, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." He said, placing a hand on Asahi's shoulder. "He seems good-natured, but as was shown today, he can get in trouble."

Daichi was the next to speak. "And _you_ getting in trouble won't help any of the rumors against you."

Asahi flinched. Yeah, those didn't need anymore fuel. His appearance was enough to keep them going.

"It's actually kind of sad how they keep going what with how cowardly you usually are."

"Hey!"

"Well, he's not wrong."

"Suga!" A frown made it's way to his features before he let out a small sigh.

The other two shared a small laugh before they all waved and went their respective ways. As soon as Asahi was home, a buzz came from his pocket. Unsurprisingly, it was Nishinoya.

_Text me your address so that I can pick you up._

He did just that before another buzz came through.

_Great! :) Don't forget to wear something nice._

Asahi raised an eyebrow.

_Where are we going?_

_You'll have to wait and see!_

He was just about done with all the cryptic things in his life as of the moment, but he wasn't going to push answers.

_All right. :(_

_Don't frown! It's not like it's some place bad._

_I'm not sure if I trust that._

_Think about it this way. If it was some place bad, I would be killed by your friends._

Fair point.

_Okay, okay. I trust you._

_Good! See you at rehearsals tomorrow._

_Yeah, see you._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so (funny enough) I'm gonna be at an acting camp all this week so I may not be able to post as often as I have been. 
> 
> I'll still try to write whenever possible, though! I just gotta find the time.


	10. It's a date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhhhh guess who's back folks

A week of rehearsals had passed and Nishinoya stood at the door of Asahi's house. He was dressed up, but not so much so that he'd look awkward in public. He had on a nice button up shirt and long pants that had to be rolled up so he didn't step on the hems.

Taking in a deep breath, he knocked on the door. A slam seemed to come from the inside and soon enough an out of breath Asahi stood before him. Nishinoya would have said something, but he was a little distracted by the fact that the other's hair wasn't in it's usual bun. Instead, a ponytail holder was being held in his mouth and his hair fell to frame his face. It looked soft and smooth, but before Nishinoya could test if it actually was, Asahi spoke up.

"You look nice." He said after taking the hair tie from his mouth and beginning to pull his hair back, offering a small smile.

His mouth started working before his brain did and the first thing he could muster was, "No, you."

Asahi raised an eyebrow, but chuckled all the same. "Thanks, I guess?"

Nishinoya gave a small nod and cleared his throat, trying to remove any flustered feelings that were left. "We should probably get going. Don't want to miss anything."

"Miss anything?"

He grinned. "First event of the night: movies."

The other gave him a very suspicious look. "... What's the genre?"

Sighing, he took the other's wrist and began to half-pull-half-lead him to the theater. "It's just a romantic comedy. Isn't that the kind people usually watch on dates?"

Asahi seemed to visibly relax at the answer before humming in thought. "Well, mostly." He replied with a small shrug. "But, sometimes it's action movies if both people are the type. And scary movies are chosen to get people... Closer."

Nishinoya's eyes widened and before he could stop it, he mentally cursed himself for not thinking of the latter first.

"But, I think you made the right choice. We can watch the romantic leads in the movie we're watching." The ace had spoken up after a moment of silence and used his free hand to rub at the back of his neck.

Wait. Free hand?

Nishinoya glanced down to their hands and found that they'd moved from him grabbing the other's wrist to their hands simply finding their own place together. Warmth flooded into his face, but he didn't bother removing his. Asahi's hand was big and warm. It was slightly calloused, but that was to be expected. It wasn't until they reached the movie theater that he let go so he could pay for the tickets and popcorn.

Stepping into their movie's theater, it was noted that the room was fairly empty except for a couple or two. They slinked all the way to the back row and sat down in the middle of it, placing the popcorn between the both of them.

The movie started up in a very stereotypical suburban neighborhood and then that's where Nishinoya's attention started to drift. He doesn't really know what made him think this was a good idea. The whole idea of this movie sounded pretty boring. His eyes wandered and found Asahi's face which was contorted into a look of concentration as he watched the movie. It was fairly amusing. Resting his head on his hand, he found that watching Asahi was much more fun.

Throughout the movie though, he had to glance back at it when Asahi turned his head. He couldn't be caught. The only time they both looked at each other was when one of the biggest clichés occurred.

In reaching for the popcorn, both of their hands found each other instead. They both looked at each other with a small heat rising into their cheeks. An odd tension seemed to set in and Nishinoya figured it was up to him to fix it.

"Wow, aren't we being cheesy?" He whispered with a small laugh.

Asahi relaxed and nodded, a small smile on his face. "I guess we are. But, it's not really a bad thing."

Nishinoya paused and the other looked back to the movie.

What did he mean by that?

He could've just meant that this meant they were comfortable for the play. It's also possible he just liked cheesy romantic things. Or maybe... He liked doing cheesy romantic things _with him_?

Nishinoya shook his head. He as looking way too far into this whole thing. It was just a statement.

Though, their hands never moved away and their fingers had somehow interlaced. It was a nice feeling there. But, it sent far too many butterflies into his stomach. Things only got worse as he actually tried to pay attention to the movie.

It was getting to one of the dramatic bits. He could tell because it was raining in the scene and the two leads were yelling things at each other. One look at Asahi and it was all but confirmed. A few tears were pricking at the ace's eyes.

The big softie. It was almost endearing.

Although, this struck something in him. He didn't like the thought of Asahi legitimately crying because he was upset or hurt. It made his heart ache a bit. Drawing his eyebrows together in thought, he looked back over at the screen.

And that's when he felt a weight on his shoulder.

It didn't take a genius to figure it what it was. Asahi had leaned over to rest his face on Nishinoya's shoulder.

It was, admittedly, an adorable sight. Though, it made all the color flood back into his cheeks. "Asahi, stop being a baby. It's just a movie."

The other looked up at him, eyes still a bit watery. "But, /Aimi/. She really loved him!"

Nishinoya sighed because it was honestly undoable to refuse that face at the moment. He settled for just teasing him later about it because for right now he was just realizing how much this soft-hearted ace could affect him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the wait! I've been so exhausted this week that I could barely stay awake enough to write


	11. Dinner

The movie ended not long after, Asahi still having to wipe a few of the tears from his eyes. It wasn't until they were leaving the theater that Nishinoya commented on that fact.

"Jeez, if I'd known it would affect you that much I might've just opted for the action movie option instead." His tone was teasing and upon looking up, Asahi could see the smirk on his features.

His lips ended up forming a pout as he folded his arms and looked away. "Movies like that are supposed to make you cry..." He murmured in response.

"Yeah, yeah. I must just be heartless."

"That's not what I-"

"That was a _joke_." Nishinoya sighed and then Asahi felt the other's arm link with his. "I understand you've got a soft heart, but yeesh. Lighten up!"

He nodded slowly at his words, turning his head back to look at the libero again. He noticed that he was smiling and looking ahead, a somewhat determined glint in his eyes. Asahi's gaze then trailed to their linked arms. It was a comforting gesture as they continued to walk.

Though about the walking... Where exactly were they going? It wasn't back in the direction of either of their houses.

Knitting his brows, he looked forward. "Hey, where exactly are we going now?"

"Out to dinner, duh." Was the reply, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I wasn't going to make you dress up nice for just a little movie and popcorn." Nishinoya looked up at him to grin. "And don't bother asking what the restaurant is. It's all a surprise!"

\-----~-----

They ended up at a local restaurant that specialized in Italian foods. It wasn't very busy, but the interior of it was very nice with low lighting and classical music playing in the background.

"You seem to be making a lot of choices that aren't very... You." He commented as they were sat down at their table.

"What do you mean?" Nishinoya had already buried his face in his menu.

"I mean, a romantic movie and then such a fancy place. They don't really seem to be... Your thing." He replied with a small shrug as he picked up his own menu.

"Well, the point was to make it so you had a good time.", was the grumbled response. "Plus, aren't we in Italy for a scene?"

Asahi nodded. "Mhm. I guess this makes sense, then..."

Nishinoya put down his menu and as the ace looked up, he noticed a frown upon his face. "You don't sound very happy."

His eyes widened. "Oh, I am! This is a really nice place. It's nice that you'd do this for..." He was about to say, 'me.', but then he remembered the conditions of this date and for a moment his heart sank. "The play."

The other seemed to pause. "Uh, yeah. For the play..."

An awkward silence ensued, but it didn't last long as the waitress came around. They both ordered their drinks and, since they knew what they wanted, went ahead and ordered their food as well. Asahi got the lasagna and Nishinoya ordered their regular pasta. After the waitress had left, they both seemed I fall into a new idle conversation, mostly about their mutual interest of volleyball. It wasn't until after they'd eaten that their conversation really started to go somewhere.

The bill had been set down on the table and before Asahi could do anything, it was snatched into Nishinoya's hands.

"Wha-"

"I'm paying."

Asahi made a bit of a "Hmph" noise and knit his brows. Nishinoya had already paid for the movie. It feels wrong of him to just-

"Shit." He looked up at that to see Nishinoya staring him dead in the eyes. "What is it?"

"Take all the breadsticks and run."

" _What_?"

"I don't have enough money. You run and I'll pay this off somehow."

"I'm not going to do that! Just let me pay!"

Nishinoya had a death grip on the check. "I'm the one who invited you out so it's only fair I pay for it!"

Asahi just rolled his eyes and extended his hand. "I already planned on paying for things anyway. At least, let me pay for my meal?"

"I'll do this place's dishes."

" _Nishinoya_."

The other let out an exasperated sigh and handed the check over. Asahi happily took it and placed his money inside, leaving it for the waitress.

"I hope you know I'm paying you back."

"Whatever you say, Nishinoya."

The waitress came to take the money and soon enough they were headed back out. The stars were already out and a small chill had crept into the air. Asahi didn't mind it much, but from the way Nishinoya was huddling into his side. It took a great amount of courage, but to help he put his arm around the libero's shoulders. The gesture caused another smile and it warmed Asahi's heart. They made their way in silence, getting to Asahi's house first.

"Thanks for coming out with me tonight." Nishinoya said as he gave a small wave.

Asahi smiled at him. "It was my pleasure." They both gave little nods to each other and just as Nishinoya looked like he was about to leave, Asahi spoke up.

"Hey, do you want to spend the night? It's, uh... Pretty late as it is, you know?"

There was a pause before he turned back to grin at him. "Yeah, sure!"

He stepped aside so Nishinoya could come in and then led him over to his room. It wasn't all that decorated, but it had a bookshelf in the corner and a desk along the wall as well as a little dresser for clothes.

"Hey, do you mind if I borrow something to sleep in?" The other asked as he looked around the room.

"You would be swimming in everything I own."

"So? It'd be more comfortable than sleeping in _this_."

Fair enough.

"All right..." Asahi went over to his dresser and found a worn t-shirt of his as well as some old stretchy shorts. He tossed them over in Nishinoya's general direction before directing him to the bathroom so he could change. While the other did that, he took the time to change into his own pajamas as well, taking out his bun and getting comfortable in his bed.

A few minutes after he was settled, the libero returned and he felt him get under the covers with him as well. Asahi expected he'd then just roll over, but that's when he felt two small arms snake around him and pull him closer. Heat swarmed to his cheeks as he returned the gesture with the arm closest to Nishinoya. It was an odd scenario, he thought. But, it definitely was one that he could get used to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, I have finally figured out how many chapters there are gonna be! ^.^ Nineteen in total.


	12. Damn Feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies for no morning cuddles, but I didn't have a plan for another chapter like that. (At least, not for this particular time period.)

Monday rehearsals had just ended. Though, all the technical students weren't off just yet. This left Nishinoya having to sit and wait for Tanaka before he could start heading home. His foot was tapping as he stared straight ahead. He was just about to see if there was anything he could do while waiting, but something to do found him first. He had heard the pounding of feet and then suddenly someone was sitting next to him. Looking to his side, Nishinoya noted that it was just Shouyou.

Throughout the two weeks so far, they'd been talking quite a bit. The other had even gotten him to take him out for treats after rehearsals. It was a viscous cycle that was eating his wallet, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to care. After all, it was nice know what a great senpai he was being.

That aside though, the ginger had a pout where his usual smile was and his face was bright red. "Something wrong, Shouyou?" He asked, raising a brow.

He was quick to nod. "Yes! Kageyama was being stupid again." There was definitely a huff in his voice.

"Isn't he always stupid?" Nishinoya asked with a small chuckle.

"Well, yeah... But, this was a different kind of stupid." His face seemed to screw up into a grimace, though it didn't look like had much feeling behind it.

"How so?"

Shouyou's fists seemed to curl up into balls as his face took on a darker hue, if that was even possible. "He went to squeeze my head again... But then, he just started feeling my hair! A-And I swatted his hand away, asking him why he was being dumb, but he just kinda looked to his hand with this... 'waaaah' expression on his face!"

Nishinoya's eyes widened. "Whaaaat? What happened next?"

"I asked him the same question again, but then he just... put his hand back! And kinda... started to..." He put his hands to his face and let out a sound that sounded something like muffled groan. "To... feel my hair!"

"Feel it?"

"Yeah! Like, running his fingers through it! It made me feel all 'gaah' and I had to get away!"

The libero hummed in thought a moment. "Isn't 'gaah' a good feeling, though?"

The other's eyes seemed to widen as his hands slipped from his face. He nodded ever so slowly.

"Sooo, you like Kageyama petting your hair?"

That was new. Usually, most of Shouyou's rants were about how he didn't want to have to keep dealing with Kageyama anymore. Then again, they had been getting less and less... Hostile. Now that he thought about it, it shouldn't really be coming as a surprise to him that he like the guy running his hands through his hair.

_I'd like it if Asahi ran his fingers through my hair._

Woah, wait, what?

He could hear Shouyou beginning to ramble again in the background, but his mind was more focused on that little thought. It was tiny, almost insignificant, but it had hit him harder than a freight train. These little thoughts that shouldn't bare meaning have been popping up all over the place. It's even worse when he's on stage with the ace. It was a _miracle_ that Nishinoya still remembers his lines while he's up there. He knew the meaning behind it all, but he just couldn't bring himself to admit it to anyone, including himself.

And it was getting bad.

He was in deep. Very, very deep and he was forgetting how to swim.

The only thing that popped him from his own thoughts was when the other whispered a very quiet, "Nishinoya-senpai..." Needless to say, Shouyou now had his full attention. But, the next words made him wish he hadn't looked up.

"I... Think I might... Like Kageyama."

Curse his kouhai for being so good about his feelings. It made a sense of guilt tug at him. Maybe he should just... Yeah.... But, he'd get to that later. For now...

"Well, duh.", was his incredibly well put together response.

"Eh?!"

"Oh, come on. You two are barely apart. You like him touching your hair. It was only a matter of time before you came to that realization." Nishinoya reached a hand over to ruffle his hair before beginning to fake a sniffle, moving his finger to wipe a nonexistent tear from his eye and looking up into the distance. "Ohhh, they grow up so fast."

Shouyou let out an embarrassed, "Hey!", his face lighting up once more.

Nishinoya just chuckled and nudged him lightly with his elbow, noticing the flow of students that were coming down from the caltwalk. "Get back to Kageyama, lover boy. I've got to start heading home."

The other gave a small "Hmph" before going on his way and the libero stood to go find Tanaka.

It wasn't all that hard to locate his pal among the crowd. The low whistling that came from him was easy to distinguish from the chatter that surrounded it. As Nishinoya approached, he could see Tanaka grin and take in a breath as if about to say something.

He never got the chance.

The libero was pulling his sleeve along until they were outside and already on their way. The other struggled, but Nishinoya's grip was strong. "Hey, what the hell, Noya?!"

"I wanna admit something, but I didn't want everyone around to hear it, okay?"

Tanaka raised an eyebrow at this, but calmed down. "Okaaaay...? What is it?"

Nishinoya spent a few seconds trying to figure out how exactly he wanted to word this. He figured the best way was to direct about it. It's not like he hadn't been already. "I am falling so hard, man."

"What?"

"It is physically paining me how much I like Asahi."

"Well yeah. Every one in the play and their families could tell that much."

He was about to argue with that, but in all honesty even he knew that. The only person who seemed even the least bit oblivious was Asahi himself. Letting out a sigh, Nishinoya rubbed at his temple. "Yeah, yeah. I just had to say it out loud or else it would bugging me forever."

Tanaka rolled his eyes. "Well, why don't you say it to the man himself instead of me?"

"You should know by now that if I wanted to tell him, I would've by now."

"Fair enough, but what's holding you back? You're not seriously considering the fact that he might reject the feelings are you?"

The silence in reply was all that was needed to set Tanaka off.

"Are you serious, Noya?! There is literally no chance of that happening!"

"You don't know that for a fact, Ryuu."

He scoffed. "Trust me, I do. It's pretty damn obvious if _I'm_ the one noticing."

Nishinoya just folded his arms and looked away. This prompted Tanaka to sigh and put a hand on his shoulder. "Look, just confess to him by the end of the play next Friday, okay? If he rejects you, I'll buy you as many Gari-Gari Kun!s as you want for the entire next week. Sound like a plan?"

"... Fine."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just love their senpai-kohai thing okay.
> 
> Also, I've just created a blog for Haikyuu purposes. 
> 
> just-haikyuu-it.tumblr.com
> 
> You can send in writing prompts, ask for headcanons, match-ups, or whatever else you'd like! It'd mean a lot if you could go check it out. ^^;


	13. Vice Versa

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't resist trying to do it from the other two perspectives

Asahi walked off stage as Monday practice ended. He was just going to follow his regular routine; finish, meet up with Suga and Daichi, and then walk home. Though, a certain someone stopped him before he could even get three steps away.

A tap on his shoulder caused him to flinch before he turned around, met with an intense blue gaze and red cheeks. The sight made him raise an eyebrow as he managed to get out a, "Yes...?"

"Can I get some advice?" He asked in reply. The answer and it took Asahi a bit by surprise. What exactly would Kageyama need _his_ advice for?

"Uh, sure?" He replied, hesitantly.

Kageyama did a small nod in thanks before continuing. "It's a story, but I'll make it brief." Asahi nodded and the setter went on. "I was talking to Hinata. He was being annoying, as usual, and on instinct I went to squish his head. But, his hair felt really... Soft. So, I just started to feel it."

Asahi was surprised by that and the other must've noticed because he paused to let him take that in.

"... And then he swatted my hand away. He asked me why I had done it and I couldn't bring myself to answer. It was weird, but the feeling I was getting was... actually okay. I just wanted to keep feeling his hair, so I put my hand back."

This prompted Asahi to zone out a bit in his own train of thought, remembering back to his weekend with Nishinoya. He remembered wanting to feel the libero's hair and, if he had it right, he actually did, but that was in the evening and the memory was hazy. Though, it made him feel a bit warm inside as the rest of it set in; late night with them just being together.

It wasn't until Kageyama tapped him again that he snapped from his thoughts. "So, what do you think I should do?" He asked and Asahi flushed in embarrassment as he didn't know what he was talking about.

"Sorry, do about what?"

"About asking Hinata out."

It was a really good thing Asahi wasn't drinking anything because that would've definitely prompted a spit-take. He took a moment to stare at Kageyama, who's expression didn't change. "W-Why are you asking for _my_ advice on that?"

Kageyama gave him a questioning look. "Well, you and Nishinoya were doing so well that-"

And that's when Asahi started to choke on his own spit. "I'm sorry, but _what_?"

"Are you two not together?"

" _No_."

The assumption had definitely taken the ace by surprise, so he was quick to deny it, but, as the other remained silent and seemingly surprised, he began to dwell on the statement. They definitely weren't together. Nothing had been said on it officially. Everything they'd done outside of school had all been for the play...

Right?

For some reason, that thought brought an odd heaviness to his shoulders. It was a weird sort of disappointment that spread slowly throughout him. The unpleasant weight only seemed to grow the more he thought. He realized that he liked being close to Nishinoya. It was disheartening to know that it would all be over by the time the play was as it only left two weeks.

Did this mean that, even though they weren't dating, he did have feelings for the other?

Oh, of course it did. What was he even thinking?

He would've groaned in defeat, but Kageyama had pulled him from his thoughts yet again. "Oh... Sorry, then."

"It's fine!" He replied, almost too quickly. "Aha... A-Anyways, just go about it in the most comfortable way for you. But, d-don't wait too long to do it. Otherwise... It'll hurt you and probably Hinata as well."

The other gave a small nod. "All right. Thanks for the input." With that, he began walking off and Asahi finally burst into flames. He could feel all the red that flooded into his cheeks and he didn't bother waiting for Suga and Daichi today. He'd just have to text them so they weren't waiting around forever.

The cool breeze that his his face as he left the school helped somewhat to calm him down. He tried to drown himself in the soft noise and feeling, but a buzz came from his pocket that ruined it all. It caused him to jolt and stop in his tracks. He took his phone out and staring him straight in the face was a text from Nishinoya.

_Are we on for another weekend practice? The show's coming up soon so. :)_

He winced and there was a pang that went through his heart.

_Yeah, sure! Your house or mine?_

The reply was almost instantaneous.

_Uhhh mine. It's closer to school._

_All right. Sounds like a plan._

_Great! See you then, Asahi._

Once he had read that message, he was quick to shoot Suga a text before shutting off his phone and getting himself home as quick as he could. He figured the other wouldn't be very happy, but that was something he was willing to deal with.

As he got back into his room, he turned his phone back on, a few more buzzes sounding to signify that the other two were sending text message after text message to him.

Asahi couldn't bring himself to care.

The only thing on his mind was how he was going to go about his interactions with Nishinoya now. Would things change? Would he have to confess?

No. He couldn't do that. The chance of rejection was a big 50/50 that easily made him shy away from the option.

All this thinking caused him to sigh in a loud huff of exasperation. Things were so complicated when they didn't have to be and it was confusing him to a point of distress.

With a noise in defeat, he ended up just trying to take a nap. He'd figure this out when the time came and he wasn't already so flustered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aha, there we go! Sorry it took so long for an update. I was at a convention all weekend. 
> 
> Though,
> 
> *gets a big flashy sign that says 'haikyuunerds'* 
> 
> I created a KIK group for Haikyuu purposes! Why? I'm not really sure. I guess I'd just like to get to know some Haikyuu buds! I'm currently the only member so if you'd like to join, please go ahead! I'll make sure it's kept a nice environment for everyone. (At least, I'll try my best! >.>) Just search for the group haikyuunerds and there you go.


	14. It's a Start

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy this folks
> 
> Heheheh

The week came to a close soon enough and went by with little attempts on Nishinoya's part to confess. It was harder than he'd expected. They only saw each other at rehearsals and they were supposed to be _rehearsing_ during those. The atmosphere was tense under the thought of the impending final week and there wasn't much room for him to try and fit in his feelings. He considered just texting Asahi, but that seemed a little too impersonal and he'd rather just get a direct reaction from the other.

Speaking of Asahi, the two now walked side by side towards the libero's house. They had been silent for the most part as Asahi seemed to be caught up in a text conversation on his phone. Nishinoya caught his attempts of speaking up, but they were always interrupted by a tiny buzz going off, prompting some sort of huff and a small look of annoyance. The sight almost made him laugh. Though, it also made him realize just how much he was watching the other. This caused him to look away and try to focus on getting back home.

They got there about ten minutes later. Asahi had turned his phone off by now and it was shoved in a pocket. "Who were you talking to?" Nishinoya decided to ask, wanting to brake the silence, but not really wanting to get to practicing just yet.

"Eh?" The other seemed surprised by the question, but he recovered. "Oh, uh, I was texting Daichi. He wanted me to talk to him about... something. But, I was telling him that now wasn't the best time."

"Something?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. Something." Asahi offered a small and nervous smile. "Don't worry, it's nothing big or anything."

Nishinoya wasn't quite sure he believed him, but he didn't really feel like persisting. If he wasn't going to say anything, fine. With a sigh, he walked over to the living room and pushed the furniture back. It was pushed back father this time to avoid anymore injuries. "All right, then. Should we get started on our practice, now?"

Asahi nodded. "Better sooner than later." He replied with a small shrug.

They then went straight into rehearsing. Neither of them had their scripts with them as their lines were supposed to be memorized by now. There were a few slip-ups, but that was to be expected since the whole 'off book' thing was still pretty new. It had only been about three days since the scripts weren't allowed out at rehearsals.

The scenes went by and the night seemed to fly by as well. They only paused in their work to eat dinner. The next time they stopped was because of how late it was getting and they both knew that it was time to stop. Once they pulled all the furniture back into place, they made their way to Nishinoya's room. The libero was quick to just hop onto his bed whilst the ace stood near the corner, looking around at the various things in the room. Yet again, Nishinoya couldn't take the silence. So, he asked the first thing that could come to mind.

"In the morning, should we just pick up where we left off?"

Looking back at him, Asahi hummed in thought before nodding. "Mhm. That'd probably be a good idea."

Scene eleven had just ended when they decided to call it quits for the night. He had been a little disappointed at that stopping point because scene twelve was the closest he was able to get to Asahi throughout the play. Even if they weren't going to kiss until the play, it was nice to really get to look into his eyes that, yes, are still very pretty, no matter how many times he's stared at them. He could just stare for those nice four seconds and take in everything that was there.

Though, the thought of the scene brought on a new question. He never had the chance to ask it because he was sure the director would be pretty pissed off at him for anymore outbursts during that scene. (He may or may not have slipped up a few more times. "Your cheeks are a nice red.", "Did you just have a mint?", etc.) But, he figured that now could be the perfect opportunity.

"Hey, Asahi?"

"Hm?"

"Have you ever kissed anyone before?"

Nishinoya could hear the flustered stuttering that came from the other and sat up to raise an eyebrow at him.

"I-I uh, well, I don't-"

"Yes or no. It's a pretty simple question."

Asahi looked down, cheeks going red. "... No. I haven't."

This prompted Nishinoya to break out into a laugh. "Dude, why were you getting so worked up about that?"

Now, the other had his eyes on him, slightly widened. "I thought that it was more socially acceptable to have been kissed by now."

"Not at all, Asahi!" He smiled, trying to be reassuring. "I mean, I haven't kissed anyone either."

"You haven't?" The ace seemed surprised by this.

Nishinoya shook his head. "Nope." The other relaxed, but he knew that wouldn't last long. Another sentence was forming itself before he could stop himself. "Maybe we should kiss."

Cue another flustered Asahi.

"You know, since we've never done it before and we don't want to do it wrong for the play, right?"

This seemed to calm the other down a bit, but it also triggered a disheartened look in his eyes. Odd. He was about to say they didn't have to, but Asahi beat him to words. "All right, sure. That sounds like a good idea."

He agreed.

Azumane Asahi just agreed to kiss him.

_They are going to kiss right now._

Nishinoya had to go over that thought quite a few times before he was able to do anything. But when he could move, he made a beeline for Asahi.

"I'm going to do it just like it is in the play, okay?"

"Okay."

He grabbed the taller by the collar and pulled him down so that they were eye level and stared into each others' gazes. For a moment, it was just them staring in silence before Nishinoya asked, "Are you _sure_?" A different intensity now found its way to the ace's features before there was a nod.

"I'm positive."

And that was that.

Nishinoya was the one to close the distance between them and _holy shit why didn't he do this sooner._

Asahi's lips were warm and soft. Inside himself, it felt like a gigantic firework just went off and all that was left was the awe and excitement of all the colors shooting off. It took a few seconds for the other to respond to this kiss, but when he did, every good feeling just amplified. Their lips were beginning to move against each others' and suddenly all his senses were focused simply on the other. He could feel the seconds ticking away and he knew that this was lasting longer than four seconds, but neither of them seemed to care all that much.

He felt the ace's arms begin to wrap around his waist. It was a hesitant gesture, but Nishinoya welcomed it. Asahi's arms were strong, yet the way he pulled the libero closer was probably one of the most gentle things he's experienced. He sighed in content as his own arms found their way around the other's neck and they stayed like that for a long time. It was only when they needed to breathe that they finally pulled away.

Their arms were still around each other and their foreheads were now pressed together.

_This is it._

He thought.

_This would be the best time to confess._

But just as he was about to open his mouth, a loud knock came from the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love kisses so much oh my goodness


	15. Interruption

Asahi wasn't going to lie to himself. The kiss just now was probably one of the best things to happen to him in awhile. It went on longer than it was supposed to, but he didn't care. It had been so nice feeling the other's lips pressed against his and when they separated, he had wanted to do it again.

He could say with confidence that he was actually about to, but the other had opened his mouth to speak, so he stopped himself to let Nishinoya say what he wanted to.

But, the words never left his mouth.

Instead, a loud knock sounded from the door and Asahi nearly jumped out of his skin, springing backwards and ending up flopping onto the bed. Nishinoya's expression looked to be conflicted, half disappointed and half trying not to laugh his ass off. A small pout came to his lips before a feminine voice found it's way to both their ears.

"Yuu?"

"Mom?"

_His mom?_

Thinking on it, he realized that the last time he was here he hadn't gotten to meet the other's parents in general. It had completely slipped his mind. Asahi raised an eyebrow at Nishinoya and he made a face as if to say, 'Sorry about this.' That only promoted more curiosity as the libero opened the door.

Standing there was a short and plump woman, though she was still about a centimeter or two taller than her son. A sweet smile was on her face and her eyes sent out a warm gaze. She stepped into the room, looking around a moment before her eyes landed on Asahi.

"Oh! You must be Yuu's new friend! I'm his mom!" She exclaimed, walking over to him and extending a hand.

Asahi glanced at it before hesitantly shaking it. "Nice to meet you. I'm-"

"Yes, I know who you are! Yuu has been talking about you a lot recently." She sent a wink back in Nishinoya's direction and he could see the other begin to splutter. "Anyways~ You're from the play right?"

Asahi could only nod in response, kind of overwhelmed by the woman's presence. He guesses he shouldn't really be surprised. Nishinoya had to get his exuberance from somewhere.

She giggled and turned back to her son, walking over next to him and pinching his cheek. "Ohh, I'm so excited for your performance! I keep on hearing Yuu-Bear mumbling his lines to himself."

_Yuu-Bear?_

Asahi had to bite his inner cheek to suppress a chuckle.

" _Mom, don't call me that_."

"Why? Am I _embarrassing_ you?"

Her grin turned cheeky as she moved her hands to her hips. Nishinoya could only muster a small nod. "Well since I've already started, I might as well continue!"

"I thought you loved me."

"Oh, I do, sweetie. But, I love doing this just as much." A hint of mischief seemed to find its way to her gaze as she went to take a seat next to Asahi on the bed.

Asahi was scared for Nishinoya's well being at this point. A red flush seemed to be creeping up his cheeks and he looked just about ready to bury his face in his hands. His mom seemed to know that he was very easily flustered.

And she used that to her advantage.

"You know," She began, placing her hands in her lap. "Back when Yuu was about five years old, we had him sign up for a local production."

"Not this story, come o-"

"Of course, it was one specifically for little kids so the eventual performance was a bunch of five year olds trying their best on stage."

"Plea-"

"But, Yuu over here had the funniest incident."

"I'm begging you."

"He forgot one of his two lines and ended up toddling off the stage right over to me, despite the people trying to usher him back, to ask what his next line was! Isn't that precious? He even had little tears in his because he was embarrassed."

"And there it is."

Asahi raised an eyebrow as he looked between the two family members, a small smile making it's way to his features and a question bubbling to his mind.

"Did you happen to take pictures?"

" _Loads_."

" _Who's side are you on, Asahi_?"

It was kind of adorable how Nishinoya was getting so flustered over all of this and he had to let out a laugh. The pink in his cheeks was definitely complimented by the conflicted frown on his face. Asahi almost commented, but under the circumstances, he knew that would be a bad idea.

Nishinoya's mom snickered a moment before standing up and letting out a happy sigh. "All right, all right. I'll leave you boys to do your thing." She said as she began walking to the door, stopping in front of her son. "Remember to behave~" It was then that her fingers darted to his stomach, tickling him quickly and causing the other to burst out laughing. Only then did she finally leave with a drawn out, "Bye~"

There was a moment of silence between them before Asahi decided to speak up.

"So, that's your mom?"

"Yup."

"Why haven't I met her before?"

"She usually works really late. She must've gotten home early today."

A slow nod and then another silence ensued before another comment.

"Hey, you do know all of your lines this time around, right?" His tone had become somewhat teasing and he could see the other's face scrunch up.

"Yes. I do. Now, let's move on from that."

"All right, all right. I just wanted to make sure. Didn't want a repeat of 'the incident'."

"Shut up."

"Sorry, am I bringing back bad memories, Yuu-Bear?"

"That's it."

Before Asahi could tell what was happening, he was being tackled by the libero. It was quite a feat considering how small he was, but it wasn't like Asahi was prepared anyways.

Their new position had Asahi lying on his back, looking up at Nishinoya, whom of which was propped up over the other by his hands. The former would've started to get a little anxious about the situation, but that was when he heard a laugh.

Nishinoya was laughing.

"O-Oh my goodness-" His shoulders were shaking. "You should see the look on your face!"

For some reason, Asahi began to laugh too and they both fell into a fit of giggles. The libero lost balance and just ended up lying on the ace's chest. They stayed like that for awhile and eventually calmed themselves down. But even once they had stopped laughing completely, they didn't bother moving. Tiny arms were wrapped around his waist once more and he rested an arm over the other, leaning his head foreword and resting if in his hair.

Yeah. He could get used to that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nishinoya has an embarrassing mom and no one can convince me otherwise


	16. What To Do

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this is a very, very short filler chapter up ahead! 
> 
> It's replacing a chapter of Nishinoya's perspective with just a general one just because.

The final days of rehearsals were finally upon the members of play. Everyone was becoming frantic to get last minute cues memorized and final props made. Needless to say, it was pretty hectic. Though, three individuals had a more important issue to discuss.

Said three individuals were Tanaka, Sugawara, and Daichi.

Their discussion? What the hell they were going to do about their friends' love life.

"We've got to do something about this. They've had a while to do something, but they can't do much without saying, 'It's totally just for the play.' which I'm pretty sure is just their version of no homo." Daichi stated as he leaned against one of the walls.

Tanaka snorted. "Noya could care less about no homo. He just thinks Asahi's only going to like him if he does things in big or romantic gestures. He says he's been waiting for the 'right time' so he can impress him."

Suga sighed and rested his head in his hand. "Why are they both so oblivious?"

A moment of silence passed of all of them trying to think before Tanaka blurted out the first thing he could think of.

"How about we lock them in a closet until we hear them making out?"

That idea was given time to sink in. Daichi gave a small shrug of his shoulders, not agreeing with it, but not disagreeing with it either. His facial features moved into a look of, 'Why not?'

Suga was about ready to give the why not.

"We can't just lock them in a closet together! We have to let things just happen naturally."

Daichi sighed and shook his head a bit. "Well, if Nishinoya's waiting for the 'right time' and we all know Asahi won't do anything about it what with his nerves, how exactly are we supposed to let it happen naturally?" He asked, folding his arms across his chest.

Suga made a look and he wanted say something, but he knew he couldn't really argue with that.

And it was settled. If they weren't together by the end of the play...

They're getting locked in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All right so
> 
> The reason this chapter is here is just because I didn't want to dive straight into the next chapter after what happened with the previous one because it felt kinda fast paced. 
> 
> And I also wanted to take an opportunity to say that it may take awhile for the next chapter to be posted because I want to be halfway finished with 18 before a post 17. 
> 
> My reasoning for that?
> 
> Ya'll are going to hate me for chapter 17.


	17. Bad Timing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Buckle in kids this chapter is one hell of a ride

The day of the play was upon them. School was released into their final rehearsal before everyone was sent home to have their dinners, get ready, and return. Asahi probably spent most of his time at home a nervous mess. It took a few attempts at calming himself down, but he finally got it to the point where at least his hands weren't shaking or anything.

He left with a good luck wish from his mom and two supportive friends dragging him off.

"You ready, Asahi?" Suga asked him, giving a reassuring smile.

"I think I am. Just a little nervous." Asahi replied, a nervous chuckle following.

"'A little nervous' he says after we had to literally pull him from his bed and out the door." Daichi commented, sarcasm evident in his tone.

"Hey!"

Suga just laughed before continuing on. "At least, you think you're ready. I'm sure you're going to do great."

Daichi gave a small nod as if he agreed with the other's sentiment and Asahi smiled at that. It was nice to have their support behind him. In fact, he probably would've continued to mentally praise them if they hadn't moved on to the next question.

"So, are you and Nishinoya dating, yet?" It was Daichi who asked the question that time.

Asahi nearly choked on his own spit.

"Wha- How did you- Why do you-"

"Everyone knows you've both got it bad for each other."

Daichi continued with a small sigh. "And yet, neither of you have done anything."

"Eh... I-I guess you're not wrong on my end, but Nishinoya's just exuberant. His actions are probably just... Friendly." He replied and he could hear Daichi scoff not two seconds after he finished.

"Look Asahi, let's just say we're pretty certain that he has feelings towards you." Suga commented and gave Daichi a look to which he responded with a nod.

He briefly wondered what they were saying to each other.

"I'd suggest you ask him out, but I think we all know you're too much of a coward for that."

"Daichi!"

Suga laughed. "Maybe you should just ask him out to prove him wrong."

"M-Maybe I will..." Asahi murmured in reply.

"Not maybe, you will. And do it before the play. It'll make things easier." Daichi practically commanded.

Well, he wasn't chosen as assistant director for nothing.

"... Fine, fine." He replied, folding his arms and feeling a new surge of nerves course through him.

It didn't help that the school was approaching. Asahi gulped and his hands found each other, rubbing together since he didn't have his bag to grip onto. He could hear his heart thumping and his mind was running through all the possible outcomes from tonight.

Mostly the negative ones.

He clenched his hands into fists and then proceeded to hold them tightly by his side, stopping in his tracks. Suga and Daichi looked back at him, confused.

"You two go ahead. I'll be there soon enough. I just... Need to clear my head, heh." He told them sheepishly, hand raising to rub at the back of his neck. They nodded and Daichi responded.

"All right, but if you're not in there by showtime, we're going to drag you all the way back if we have to."

Asahi nodded. "Yes, I know."

With that, the other two went on to prepare for that night's show. Asahi, on the other hand, went around to the back of the school and found himself in front of the gymnasium. He sat down in front of the doors, hugging his knees to his chest and closing his eyes.

His mind went through many awful scenarios, trying to find something worse than what could possibly happen tonight. There were many things he could think of that we're worse than things onstage: going to school in his underwear (That had only happened in a dream, but embarrassing none the less!), failing an assignment the one day that everyone wanted to ask him what he got, running into class late on the first day and having the teacher almost threaten to call the cops because of his appearance (He doesn't like to talk about that one.), etc. Though, he couldn't think of anything that out-weighed what he felt when he thought about being rejected by Nishinoya.

He opened his eyes and frowned to himself. Would he have to use a different calming method? Asahi tried to think of something else his mom had told him to try.

Perhaps... Finding a happy place? It was worth a shot.

He closed his eyes again and let his mind wander. He found himself visualizing his own bedroom, lying down on his bed. It was a familiar setting, but he felt something warm tucked up next to him. It didn't take much for him to realize what that warmth was.

It was Nishinoya, cuddled up next to him and breathing deeply as he slept. Just his luck that his happy place would include the one deciding factor in this whole mess. Sighing, he still decided to keep the thought in mind. It still made him feel happy and warm and it calmed him down on the inside.

He sat there a moment, letting it sink in, before he stood up once more. It was now or never, so he began to make his way over to the auditorium. He went straight to the backstage door, taking in a deep breath before stepping inside.

He could do this. It was a simple statement. Just tell him that you like him. Suga and Daichi both said that he likes you back so why should anything go wrong?

With that thought in mind, he opened the door and walked in, making his way over to the onstage area. He had just stepped onto the stage, but any sliver of hope he had immediately slipped from him when he heard the next few words.

"You only liked him for the play?"

It was an unfamiliar voice, but the words were all too clear in his head.

Everything slowed down. He could feel his expression falling and a few tears threatening to spill from his eyes. Nishinoya's head poked out from behind the person who had been speaking. He seemed to smile immediately, but his face contorted into a look of confusion. Asahi faintly remembers his name being called, but he couldn't bring himself to listen to that. He had been expecting for awhile now that the other didn't like him, but... Actually hearing it was so much worse.

Not knowing what to do, he clenched his fist at his sides and made his way off the stage, down one of the hallways that lead to the main auditorium doors. He heard his name being called once again, this time a bit more urgent, but he just picked up pace and soon enough all that could be heard was the sound of the auditorium door slamming and maybe, if you listened close enough, his heart shattering.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah a h a
> 
> I am so sorry oh my god look at this nice little cliff hanger
> 
> But hey
> 
> What's a theater AU without a little DRAMA? :D


	18. Only You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this is the longest chapter yet
> 
> Also, it's a good thing I liked writing this chapter, otherwise we might have been left on that cliff hanger awhile

Nishinoya was one of the earliest people to come back. In fact, he never left. His mom had just brought him a bento box so he could get in some of his own last minute rehearsing. Though, the director made him sit in the audience for the most part since he was doing a check over of all the props, lights, and sound cues. Needless to say, he didn't want the other fooling around while he was gone.

Eventually, he was allowed on stage along with everyone else who had shown up somewhere in that time frame. He made his way to where his first entrance was, but was stopped by a hand grabbing his arm.

"Noya!" It was obviously Tanaka. It wasn't like he was expecting anyone else.

"Have you popped the question yet?" He asked, folding his arms with a grin.

Nishinoya rolled his eyes. "No, I haven't, Ryuu."

"Oh, come on! What's taking you so long?" The other's eyes narrowed a bit. "I know you want to wait for the perfect moment, but is it really that hard to find some frilly flowers to sprinkle and just go for it?"

He considered the idea briefly before shaking his head. "Asahi seems like the sensitive type. He'll want something special!"

"At this point, I think he just wants you."

He gave a small shrug before taking a few steps to walk around Tanaka.

"Look, you've still gotta ask him out soon. I mean, the play is literally about an hour away." He continued when Nishinoya didn't reply.

"Yeah, yeah. You'll be owing me Gari Gari Kun! in no time!" He grinned, nudging the other lightly with his elbow.

"You've finally decided to stop dancing around this whole thing, then?" A voice said from behind them, only vaguely familiar to Nishinoya.

As the person the voice belonged to came into view, he was then actually recognized. It was the Tsukishima guy who was working with Tanaka. His face had a smile on it, but it didn't exactly look genuine, if anything it was a borderline smirk.

"Dancing around what whole thing?" Nishinoya asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You know, the whole thing about your feelings. I mean, honestly, did you really think anyone would believe-"

Nishinoya heard footsteps.

"-you only liked him for the play?"

He didn't particularly like the tone he was using. It was too... Inquisitive. Well, he didn't pay too much mind to it. He was more interested to see who had arrived. He poked his head around Tsukishima and smiled wide as he realized who it was.

Asahi was standing there, but something seemed off. He looked... Sad? Broken? Nishinoya raised a brow, calling out a small, "... Asahi?" But the way the other was staring off into space, it seemed as if he hadn't even been heard and were those... Tears?

He could see the other's fists clench and was about to approach him, but Asahi turned and ran, over to the doors of the auditorium.

"Asahi!" He tried calling out again, but it was a bit too late. His eyes were wide and he looked back at Tanaka and Tsukishima, searching their faces for any answers as to what would cause that.

Tsukishima gave a shrug of his shoulders and Tanaka just seemed as shocked and confused as he was. Nishinoya's brows furrowed in confusion as he let out an exasperated sigh. He supposed he would just have to find this out for himself.

Taking in a deep breath, he ran after him, bursting past the door. He just barley made it to hear the sound of another door slamming to his left. He was quick to follow after the sound and it seemed the next door led him right outside. It was getting dark, the sun beginning to set. He knew he wouldn't have too much time before they had to be performance ready.

Looking around, he tried to figure out which direction Asahi went in. His only hint was two figures standing off in one direction. They were his best shot. His legs moved as fast as they could towards the two, but he slowed down as things really came into view.

It seemed to be Kageyama and Hinata. They were already in costume, large cardboard cut-outs of the sun and moon hung over their shoulders. As Nishinoya got closer he noticed how close _they_ were and-

They were making out.

Huh.

Good on ya, Shouyou.

As much as he didn't want to disturb that, he still had no idea which way Asahi went. So, he walked up and tapped Hinata on the shoulder. What happened next was not what he was expecting, though.

He had apparently startled the other, judging by the look on his face; the look being the most reasonable part of his reaction.

Hinata had jumped and spun around to face Nishinoya. That wouldn't have been too much of a problem if it weren't for the giant cardboard sun that hung from his shoulders. Poor Kageyama was knocked a few feet back by the force of the cardboard spin.

"WH-WHAT-"

"Calm down, you dumbass!"

Nishinoya could only stare a moment. If it weren't for the situation at hand, he might have laughed.

"Geez, sorry for the interruption." He started, looking between the two of them. "But, did either of you see Asahi go this way?"

Hinata hummed in thought and Kageyama gave a small, disgruntled nod. "I heard running foot steps pass by us. I don't know if it was him, but it could be."

Nishinoya nodded slowly. "All right. Thanks, Kageyama." With that, he continued on running and he was pretty sure the other two were connected at the lips yet again.

Continuing on the path, he came to a circular sitting area. On the opposite end of it, there was a bench with a lone figure. He didn't have to stare long to know who exactly it was.

"Asahi?" Nishinoya called out to him. He could see the other look up and then away.

"What do you want?", was the weak response.

"I want to know what made you storm out of the auditorium like that." He told him, taking a few cautious steps towards him. He was met with only silence in return, so he spoke again. "Please Asahi, I care about you and you're making me worry when you're acting like this."

Asahi's face seemed to become bitter at that. "No, that's the problem... You don't care."

Nishinoya raised an eyebrow. "What the hell do you mean I don't care?" He shook his head.

"Just forget it. Go back and rehearse, I'll be there in time."

The libero wasn't going to take that as an answer. "No! Definitely not. Tell me what's making you upset. I want to know and I want to help."

He could see Asahi's fists clenching and he stood, looking Nishinoya dead in the eyes. "You can't help!" He began and Nishinoya could see a fresh set of tears forming in his eyes. "Look, I..." He had to pause and take in a deep breath. "I _really_ like you. Not just in the play way. I _actually_ want to be with you. But, I heard. I heard him say it. That _you_ only liked me for the play. I mean, I was expecting it because who would ever like someone like me? But... It _hurts_ to hear it. To actually have to listen to someone voice the rejection you've already been dreading... It's unbearable. Hell, my happy place was with you!"

The tears were beginning to spill and Nishinoya wasn't yet able to find his voice, so the other continued.

"And now it can't be. I was lead on by stupid feelings and I feel like an idiot... And now I've probably gone and made this far worse than it already was." With that, Asahi buried his face in his hands and sunk himself down to the floor.

At this point, Nishinoya was on the verge of tears as well, fists clenched at his sides.

_Dammit, Asahi._

Taking in a deep breath, he sat down in front of the other and removed his hands from his face. It was then that he took Asahi's face into his own hands and crashed their lips together.

He could feel the other freezing, but it didn't take long for him to give into it. Arms wrapped around his waist and pulled him closer. The kiss tasted a bit salty from both of their tears, but neither of them minded. In all honesty, this is probably what they both needed.

It was Nishinoya who pulled back first, but he didn't move his hands away from the other's face. He kept it so that Asahi was staring him in the eyes.

"Asahi, you don't even know the half of it. You walked in at a bad time. Before I wanted to admit what I was feeling, yeah, I said what we were doing was just for the play. The person I told was just trying to tease me by saying that no one would ever believe that. It was just... Phrased wrong." He paused a moment, taking in a deep breath.

"Trust me on this, I have never liked someone as much as I've liked you. You're the only one I've ever felt this strongly for and to hear you think that this would all be over and done with with the play breaks my heart. I really like you, Asahi, with and without the play."

Asahi looked like he could laugh and cry all at the same time. It seemed as if he was trying to say something, but couldn't find the words. Nishinoya cut him off by gently kissing away the tears at the corners of his eyes and from there they just melted into their own puddle of affection.

Asahi kissed his cheeks, his forehead, his chin. He kissed Asahi's nose, his scruff, his lips. Their arms were perfectly around each other and Nishinoya had somehow found his way into Asahi's lap. The sun was now considerably lower in the sky and stars were beginning to shine for the night.

They wanted to just stay like that, but they knew the director would kill them if they were late. So, they both stood up and walked back to the auditorium, hand in hand and more ready for this than they'd been for anything else in their life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There we are! Nice and together.
> 
> There's only gonna be one more chapter after this *tear tear* But, I have two other fic ideas so hey it probably won't be long before something else is up


	19. Wrapped Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The perspective is just kind of omniscient since I wanted to get everyone in it

The play was a huge success and it came as no surprise when the two leads received many compliments emphasizing how realistic their acting was. All they could do was smile in return and link hands. There were a few that got the gist, but others...

Not so much.

By others, it means Tanaka, Daichi, and Suga.

See, they had yet to hear anything about their whole confession of sorts yet since, when the two had gotten back, they were immediately put in costumes and put on stage. They didn't exactly have a lot time to say something to the three about the whole thing.

But, that didn't mean they were expecting to be thrown into a closet over it.

"You're not coming out until we hear smoochin!" Came Tanaka's voice from just outside the door.

"Ryuu! This isn't needed!" Nishinoya yelled in response.

"Like hell it isn't! You two have been dancing around each other for a month now!"

"And we _stopped_ just about an hour ago!"

"...What?"

"Long story short, we're a couple now. Happy?"

"How do I know that you aren't lying?"

"Don't you believe in me, Ryuu?"

There was a click and the door was unlocked, slowly creaking open so that Tanaka could stick his head through and look between the two. In the dim light, it was hard to see, but he could just barley make out how their hands were linked.

"Of course, I believe in you Noya."

Both of the boys faked teary-eyed expressions and did a double chest pound with their fists, followed by a nod.

Asahi could only raise a brow, but he decided not to question. From observation alone, he could tell that their friendship went way back.

It was then that Suga reached to open the door fully. Daichi looked as confused as Asahi felt, but he didn't verbally let on. Well, not that he really had the time either way. Suga had a big smile on his face and his response was immediate.

"Congratulations, you two!" He exclaimed, hands coming together in a clap and his expression stretching into a wide smile.

"Thanks, Suga." Asahi replied, shoulders relaxing and a smile of his own forming. It was hard not to smile when seeing one from the other.

Daichi also seemed to have the look of a proud father written across his features before asking his next question. "So, who actually popped the question?"

The newly formed couple looked to each other. Neither of them had really 'popped the question'. It had just sort of melded into place after the entire ordeal.

"Well," Nishinoya started. "Asahi was the first one to technically _confe_ -"

He was cut off by a loud, "Dammit!" As Daichi and Tanaka handed a grinning Suga 1000 yen each.

"... You were betting on this?" Asahi asked, mouth agape.

"Figures." Nishinoya huffed.

They wrapped up the conversation with a few awkward goodbyes and head their own ways; some to go home and some to gather their things. Though of course, Asahi and Nishinoya walked out together, hands clasped with one another's and their shoulders bumping every so often.

Their conversation was light and casual and it felt so incredibly natural. It was nice now that they could throw in their own little 'I love you's and other little compliments and statements without the fear of future awkwardness. They could simply be together and say whatever and just get lost in each other's words.

Which they did.

Their conversation took them all the way to Asahi's house and then to his room. Asahi told Nishinoya to pick out a movie and, once it started playing, they both found their way to the bed. Asahi sat with his back against the wall, facing the screen. Nishinoya sat next to him with his arm around the ace's shoulders, despite the fact he had to reach up a bit to do it.

Not that it mattered in the long run, anyways. About half-way through the movie, the libero had ended up in Asahi's lap.

"You really do have pretty eyes." Nishinoya murmured, pressing their foreheads together.

Asahi's cheeks flushed. "Well, you have soft hair." He tried to counter.

"And you've got cute scruff." A kiss was then given to said scruff.

"And you have nice cheeks." A kiss to each.

"And you've got long lashes." A peck to each eyelid.

"And you've got nice lips." They met for a kiss, arms finding their way around each other. It lasted a minute or two, both boys going until they were out of breath. As they pulled apart, Nishinoya was grinning and Asahi gave a nervous smile.

After a moment of silence, Nishinoya spoke up again. "You've also got a sexy man-bun." He said as his hand reached up to poke it.

The ace's cheeks were aflame once more. " _What_?"

"And a cute butt."

" _Nishinoya_."

He just laughed in response and peppered kisses to his boyfriend's face. From there, they sunk down into a lying position and curled up around each other. Asahi wrapped his arms around Nishinoya and the latter curled up into the formers chest. The room was becoming dark and the movie still played on. Neither of them really knew what was happening, but the background noise was comforting. It made the entire thing feel even more... Domestic.

Nishinoya looked up after a few minutes, whispering, "I love you."

Asahi responded by planting a kiss on his forehead and saying, "I love you more."

"That's impossible.", was the retort as a few soft kisses were placed on the ace's neck.

He hummed and shook his head. "No, I'm pretty sure."

"And _I'm_ pretty sure that's a lie."

"Well, _you're_ pretty wrong."

"And _you're_ just pretty in general."

Asahi didn't know how to respond to that and ended up spluttering a bit of nonsense with Nishinoya chuckling into his chest. As soon as he collected his thoughts, he simply let out a, "Hmph", and buried his face in the other's hair.

"Love you, _babe_ ~" The libero said through his laugh.

"Love you, too, _Yuu-Bear_ ~"

Nishinoya groaned at that and it was Asahi's turn to chuckle. They then called themselves down and simply decided to soak up each other's presence because despite any groans it was easy to tell that they really did love each other and that neither of them wanted to let go of what they now had. They each planned on staying with one another for as long as they possibly could.

With no end in sight, they both drifted off to sleep, wearing peaceful smiles and their hearts beating as one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaand here we are! This is the end folks. I really hope you enjoyed it as much as I liked writing it and thanks to everyone who left kudos and comments and gave feedback! All if it was really appreciated and I hope to start up my next fanfic soon. ^.^


End file.
